“He was an absolute disaster on immigration as governor,” said Roy Beck, president of NumbersUSA, a group that played a major role in rallying the phone calls that helped defeat this year’s Senate immigration bill. “Every time there was any enforcement in his state, he took the side of the illegal aliens.”

The Washington Times article gives us a hint at what consensus is developing around how the different Republican candidates for president are on the illegal alien issue among the various national groups devoted to this issue. Here’s how it seems to be shaking out, and I can’t find much fault with this basic assessment:

Fred Thompson: Terrific platform, even if his past voting record is somewhat uneven.

Mike Huckabee: “Path to citizenship” (amnesty) supporter.

John McCain: “Path to citizenship” (amnesty) supporter.

Duncan Hunter: Absolutely solid.

Ron Paul: Absolutely solid.

Tom Tancredo: Absolutely solid.

Among the top tier candidates, if illegal aliens is one of your most pressing issues, Fred Thompson seems to be the guy. For those that want to look at the entire slate of candidates, probably Duncan Hunter is well deserving of your pick.

UPDATE: And what else shows up this morning? An email from likely Senate candidate Chris Saxman, telling us why he thinks John McCain of all people is worthy of support. I think he just threw his conservative credentials under the bus. Here’s an excerpt:

McCain’s willingness to listen and learn from his mistakes is refreshing and essential if a leader is to earn our trust and unify America. After supporting the failed immigration reform bill earlier this year, he listened to our concerns on immigration and now understands a secure border is a prerequisite to any worker program or policy to address illegal immigrants already in our nation.

Saxman identifies himself as the co-chair of McCain’s campaign in Virginia in the email. Ouch.

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53 Comments

This is a shame because I really like Huckabee. He is a fantastic speaker, great demeanor, has an honest look and feel to him, is a minister, comes from humble roots….and then his immigration stance. *sigh*

Giuliani is going to implode within 6 months as I see it. Thompson is done before he started. Tancredo and Paul are pretty much seen as one trick ponies and/or kooks, Huckabee is seen as weak on illegal immigration which I firmly believe will be THE key issue for conservatives in the ‘08 election and Hunter doesn’t have enough name brand recognition. My prediction is for nickel slick Mitt to be the candidate when all the dust clears. He is presidential looking, is confident, is a great speaker, is charismatic, has a way of telling people what they want to hear and making them believe it. A true politician’s politician.

I like Huckabee though and am very disappointed that he has such a differing opinion on illegal immigration than that of his core constituency. He is a minister after all so I suppose it’s to be expected that he would think that way.

park’d - Maybe it’s BECAUSE of his humble roots that he takes the stand he does. Nothing like having been there! And maybe his religion also plays a role. You know: “do unto others” with no mention of legal or illegal.

Krusty I understand their plight and sure as hell wouldn’t want to be in their position. I was lucky enough to be born a US citizen and even though we were poor when I was growing up, we made ends meet somehow. I can’t however abide by illegal lawbreakers and people that don’t have respect for their host country or its citizens and this is what I see on a daily basis here in Manassas Park. These people have no respect for us or our customs and have no ambition to assimilate and respect American culture. Most of them appear to be here solely to make as much tax free money as they can and leech as many free services as possible before they are forced to pay the piper.

If I weren’t stuck flat dab in the middle of the area’s most notorious sanctuary city and didn’t have to deal with this and see the blight and problems that this problem creates then maybe I could see myself taking the more humanitarian course. It’s the old adage of someone being against the death penalty until a killer murders THEIR mom or THEIR wife. You’d be surprised how fast someone’s ideals can change when it affects THEIR lives.

I’d like to send a formal request to Gov. Huckabee to buy a house and live in my town or any other town that has been overrun by illegals so that he can see what his policies create and how they affect the citizens of this great country. It’s easy to sit on top of your soap box in the governor’s mansion or some other secluded, wealthier community and tell us all that we should be compassionate and look the other way to 30 million invaders.

park’d - I take it you’re not in a position to move (you say you’re stuck). I agree with you. As I said abt Huckabee , nothing like having been there, I say about you “nothing like BEING there”. Walk in your brother’s moccasins, ect. ect. has always been the real way of trying to understand others’ points of view.

I came from poor moccasins and worked hard to get where I am now. Now I am stuck in a town full of illegals. Why should I have to move to get back to a sense of community and civility? Why won’t my elected officials enforce the laws; zoning, employment and immigration? I think I have all the bases covered on my end. I have been so poor when I was in college that I had to rob Peter to pay Paul and live off ramen noodles for six months. I never got any welfare or free services and I’m a US citizen! It’s absurd and anyone that doesn’t understand this is frankly not in touch with reality. I really like the governor but his position on illegal immigration is untenable and will be his campaign’s undoing.

It can’t get any worse than GW or Hillarah so Huckabee even with his distorted view on illegal immigration is still MAGNITUDES better than either of the before mentioned. I can live with Huckabee if I had to because I like and respect the man and think he would be a good leader overall. I sure can’t say that about GW. I’m counting the days before we are out of his regime.

Park’d: Why do you characterize Thompson’s campaign as done before it started? I like his flat tax position, and he seems solid on the immigration issue now, although some votes while he was senator were questionable.

Advocator: You can say that Thompson’s position has matured, but in politics, you can only judge a person based on their record because politicians will say what they want to get elected…it is a rare politician who says what he means AND has the record to stand by it. Those who do DEFINITELY have my respect, even if I may not agree with them, as long as they are consistent.

I like Fred, don’t get me wrong. I first knew about him on “Hunt for Red October” and then I took interest in his career on the Floor. What would be nice would be that questions to the candidates actually have substance - flat tax, eliminating minimum wage, winning the War on Terrorism, securing our borders and NOT these joke questions, “Yankees or Red Sox” or “Your opinion on the Stars and Bars.”

Sadly, though, our nation has become an electorate of “sound bytes” instead of substance. Looks over merit. I SERIOUSLY doubt Teddy Roosevelt or Abe Lincoln could EVER get elected today

My top issues are illegal immigration and secure borders/ports. There is only one Candidate that has been strong and firm on these issues…Tom Tancredo. I am one of the Citizens that asked him to run. He has my vote, no matter who is on the ballot.

Thompson looks weak in debates, is frankly not that informed on many issues, looks sickly, and has lost a lot of respect from his constituents for entering the race so late and going at it very limp wristedly for the first few months. Unless he really turns on the burners to full bore NOW then he is done. My money is on Nickel slick Mitt with Huckabee as that dark horse that very well may come from behind and surprise all of us.

John, It has come to be know that the questions you speak about were not asked by undecided republican voters as we were led to believe, but voters that are on committees or already support democratic nominees. Is that right?

I don’t suppose anyone saw the interview Anderson Cooper had with the general at around 7 am the morning after the debates? He really appeared to be an independent to me. He had supported 2 Republicans in the 2007 election and had lent his name to the Clinton Gay and Lesbian Task force. He stated he had not done anything but lent his name. True? False? I don’t know. Just reporting here.

On the other hand, what difference does it really make? He asked a question that could have been asked by anyone and it was hardly an entrapment question. Most people have some opinion on gays in the military. Certainly any candidate worthy of being Commander in Chief should have had a ready answer or at least considered an opinion on the issue.

This story really has gotten way too much exposure. We should be looking at the answers to his question and evaluating how the responses fit in with our own beliefs, if we even give a rat’s rear end.

Dolph, I think chairing the steering committee for gays and lesbians for Hillary’s campaign is more than lending his name. With that said, I do not care for anything more than not disclosing who you are asking the questions. IF a republican connected person had asked a question of the democratic nominees, we would not have heard the end of it either.

The point is, what were they trying to accomplish? Embarrass the candidates or the party? If that was not the reason, then they should have given full disclosure in the beginning. I see it when I read articles about money and investing. I am sure they didn’t give disclosure because it would have immediately disqualified them to ask the question. I will agree some of the questions needed to be asked and answered.

I personally feel that Romney gave a good answer even though the General didn’t think so. I want a leader that will gather information before making a decision than one that will stand on the stage and answer the question with only a few seconds of thought.

Huckabee!! looks familiar..Be very Afraid of him–he’s a slick talker and almost 8 years ago we thought we were electing pracical thinking evangelical –and he is still twisting the knife on us when it comes to illegal-immigration

If you don’t want anything done to stop illegal immigration, then vote for those that have flip flopped on the issue. With Tancredo, what you see is what you get. I am surprised that he is not in the news more, since he is the only candidate that has been trying to stop illegal immigration and speaking out about it, before it was THE issue of the day.

Advocator said on 30 Nov 2007 at 11:38 am:
OT, but Heath Shuler’s SAVE Act now has 112 co-sponsors, none of which has the last name “Wolf, ” or the first name “Darfur Frank.”

You probably won’t ever see his name on that bill. I have sent him a number of e-mails asking him to support the bill and become a co-sponsor. Not a word from him. Ask his what his voting record re “anchor babies” is. Doubt you will get an answer. It is non-existant. He has for the most part supported bills against illegal immigration but he won’t touch the “anchor baby” subject. You can check his voting record re illegal immigration at this site.

Greg L said:
I’d still prefer that Speaker Howell had come out supporting Duncan Hunter or Tom Tancredo, but Huckabee isn’t a bad pick at all, and making that pick now is a gutsy, and probably politically courageous move. We could use more of that. Huckabee and Howell are pretty consistent politically, which makes this a heck of a lot more reasonable than Bolling’s endorsement of Romney, who demonstrably has significant disconnects with Bill Bolling’s professed conservative positions on the issues, unless you selectively consider his more recent statements and disregard his past performance.

Swinging in the wind…..doesn’t that make you a liberal illegal apologist from a sanctuary town somewhere in the northeast?

With Tancredo, what you see is what you get. I am surprised that he is not in the news more, since he is the only candidate that has been trying to stop illegal immigration and speaking out about it, before it was THE issue of the day.

Agree! Unfortunately, he is not going to seek re-election after his term expires next year. We will have lost a loud voice against illegal immigration.

The general didn’t say he chaired anything in the interview I was speaking of. Now that is not to say he was being truthful. Do you have any neutral sources that put him in that position?

I might feel a little differently about it if I found out he was not honest in his interview with Cooper. On the other hand, I still feel too much energy is being spent on it. To me, its just another day in political paradise. It revs up the opposition …regardless who the opposition du jour is.

vigilant1 and starryflights:
I agree with you both - Tancredo is the only candidate who has been consistent and tough on the illegal immigration issue. It is a shame that he won’t be back once his term is over. And he never gets a fair shake in debates because he doesn’t get asked as many questions.

All you Tancredo admirers - Do you really believe that the next president of the US will only have to handle immigration matters? That’s ALL Tancredo has talked about. That’s but one small part of running the country. Can you seriously picture him at some international meeting discussing ANYTHING beyound illegal immigration? Really?!? starryflight as vice president next!

Krusty, yes I can see Tancredo as President of the United States. I honestly believe that he would get things done for this country. I am tired of all the politicians with open pockets that owe special interest groups and big business. We need a President that owes the citizens of this country and no one else.

Now that you mention it…..Can you imagine Mrs. Clinton discussing anything, without a lie attached to it? Now, that would be novel …….
Now that’s a question you need to ask yourself, Krusty.
Yes, I can imagine Tancredo as President! Maybe if he were asked more questions during the debates, he’d have more to say on A LOT of issues.

Mrs. Clinton has white house experience. She fired the travel people and she caused all the drug stocks to crash when she was championing her health care plan that bombed and she more than likely had a hand in the records that were requested somehow coming up missing pertaining to the White Water case.

She’s employing on her campaign staff none other than Sandy Burgler who stole and destroyed classified documents from the National Archives and admitted his guilt and said he’d take a lie detector test so the government could find out what pre 911 documents he destroyed so the 911 commission wouldn’t find out how incompetent Slick Willy was with National Security.

And don’t forget all the stuff she and her staff stole as they were leaving office and all the computer keyboards that had to be replaced because all the letter “w’s” were ripped out. I really want her in charge… snicker snicker

I have never said I’m for Clinton. Her vocal gymnastics are admirable. After all, how many years has she been around other truth/lie gymnasts in politics? However, I DO believe that her intelligence is way above Tancredo’s and that of several of her competitors. Intelligence isn’t everything, alas.
And I believe, were she to become Commander in Chief, that she might prove to be another Golda Meir. Don’t kid youselves, this is one tough cookie!

I recently read a sci-fi military action book set about 40 years in the future that took place onboard the USS Hillary Clinton, an aircraft carrier named for her based on how she took down all the islamic terrorists when she was president. Of course they also smoked cigars with a brand name of “Clinton’s” referring of course to Slick Willy.

Copied directly from Hillary Clinton’s Website. LGBT Committee members. Don’t see anything that says the General chaired it. However, at the bottom of the long list of committee members, it specifically states that those listed have endorsed Hillary Clinton. The general is on that list.

On the eve of the 38th anniversary of Stonewall, Hillary for President announced the formation of “LGBT Americans for Hillary,” a national steering committee of over 65 leaders in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. Members of the steering committee include LGBT elected officials, activists from national LGBT and Democratic Party political groups as well as leaders from the worlds of business, entertainment and sports. This leadership committee will work with the campaign on several areas including political outreach, communications, policy advice and counsel, and fundraising.

…

The list of supporters on the steering committee demonstrates the history of friendship that Hillary Clinton has had with this community and the depth of her support among LGBT leaders. It includes people like former U.S. Assistant Attorney General Eldie Acheson, who went to college with Hillary Clinton, and Neel Lattimore who worked for her as First Lady as well as film/TV writer and producer Greg Berlanti who met her last week and signed on as a supporter immediately. The list also includes prominent LGBT activists who have been leaders on issues important to the community, including three retired members of the military who have worked to overturn the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, advocates in the fight against HIV/AIDS, and the attorney who argued and won the landmark Supreme Court case, Lawrence v. Texas.

…

Hillary Clinton has worked to advance the cause of equality for LGBT Americans for many years. As president, Clinton has pledged to end the divisive leadership of the past six years and work with the LGBT community to make sure that all Americans in committed relationships have equal economic benefits and rights. She also will work to end discrimination in adoption laws. As a U.S. Senator, she has worked to expand federal hate crimes legislation and pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, and will sign the legislation into law once she is in the White House. She will also put an end to the failed policy of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

“I am proud to have the support of such distinguished leaders in the LGBT community,” said Clinton. “Together, we can move our nation closer to the promise of fairness and equality that all Americans deserve.”

…

LGBT Americans For Hillary Steering Committee Members (Committee In Formation)*:

* Members of LGBT AMERICANS FOR HILLARY have endorsed Hillary Clinton for President in their individual capacity. The names of past or present affiliations are included to assist in identifying the individuals listed and do not indicate any endorsement by that group or organization.

Krusty–Hillary’s intelligence is way overestimated. She couldn’t even pass the DC Bar. When she talks, I hear gobbledegook, not clarity. Tancredo shows much more intelligence, in my opinion. As does Duncan Hunter. At any rate, the president or anyone else does not have to be a genius to be successful. Hillary is a lying sociopath which is why she should not be president.

/\/\3|)iç 64 (Winner of the 40,000th post award) said on 30 Nov 2007 at 1:36 pm:
“John, It has come to be know that the questions you speak about were not asked by undecided republican voters as we were led to believe, but voters that are on committees or already support democratic nominees. Is that right?”

It was my understanding that the General was the only one, but I really don’t have the answer to it. My gut said that it was a set up. Heck, I would have said, “Take down that POS Texas flag and put up one from a REAL state!!” lol

Again, the questions were pretty sad and just goes to belittle the office of the President of the United States. Heck, would anyone ask ANDROPOV “boxers or briefs?”!!! lol Now THAT is a visual better left unsaid.

That is one ‘campaign contribution’ I would be willing to make. Build a bear sounds like a plan. Actually, we could get more bear for our buck if we bought some ‘made in China’ bears at one of the Dollar Stores….attached the little parachutes….and go airborn over Sudan. Yea, that’s the ticket.

Securing our borders must be our top priority and has reached the level of a national emergency.

The Governor supports the $3 billion the Senate has voted for border security. This money will train and deploy 23,000 more agents, add four drone planes, build 700 miles of fence and 300 miles of vehicle barriers, and put up 105 radar and camera towers. This money will turn “catch and release” into “catch and detain” of those entering illegally, and crack down on those who overstay their visas.

In this age of terror, immigration is not only an economic issue, but also a national security issue. Those caught trying to enter illegally must be detained, processed, and deported.

The Governor opposes and will never allow amnesty. He opposed the amnesty President Bush and Senator McCain tried to ram through Congress this summer, and opposed the misnamed DREAM Act, which would have put us on the slippery slope to amnesty for all.

The Governor opposes and will not tolerate sanctuaries for illegals. The federal government must crack down on rogue cities that willfully undermine our economy and national security.

The Governor opposes giving driver’s licenses to illegals and supports legislation to prevent states from doing so.

The Governor will stop punishing cities which try to enforce our laws and protect the economic well-being, physical safety, and quality of life of their citizens.

The Governor opposes and will not tolerate employers who hire illegals. They must be punished with fines and penalties so large that they will see it is not worth the risk.

The Governor opposes the economic integration of North America that would create open borders among the United States, Canada, and Mexico. He will never yield one iota or one inch of our sovereignty.

The Governor will take our country back for those who belong here. No open borders, no amnesty, no sanctuary, no false Social Security numbers, no driver’s licenses for illegals.

In addition, like many of the folks who post here, I don’t want the illegals here either. Not happy about it. However, most of the anger here and at other websites on the internet seems to be directed at the illegal aliens. I’m not saying it shouldn’t be. However, it would be nice to see more of the blame directed at our own incompetent federal government for not enforcing the laws on the books to begin with. Why do they get a free pass? They have done a horrendously lousy job. Both sides of the aisle. Pathetic.

If Roy Beck and others are going to do a smear job on Governor Huckabee, it would be nice if he would be a little bit more specific about what exactly it is that makes the governor weak on illegal immigration. The Governor has stated, first and foremost, that the borders need to be secured and sealed. Sounds like a pretty good first step to me.

Just because he doesn’t propose rounding them all up and shipping ‘em back doesn’t make him weak on immigration. I’m not even in favor of that.

Please, someone explain. I am objective and all ears. Am also hear for open discussion and sharing facts.

[My] position was and remains that you do not punish a child for the crime of the parent. If a child is in the back seat of a car when a father drives drunk, it’s perfectly appropriate to put the father in the drunk tank, but you don’t put the child in the drunk tank. If a child was brought here when he or she was 5 years old and has gone through our entire education system and has worked hard, learned and made straight As, and has qualified for an Academic Challenge Scholarship, which was a very specific program in the state, and that student has qualified to be able to earn that scholarship, I’d rather that student go to college and become a taxpayer, not simply take some low-end hourly wage job and ultimately be a tax-taker.

My point is, to say that the Governor will reward every single illegal alien child with educational funding is false and misleading.

Stating facts about a candidate is not a smear job just because YOU don’t like it. Check into Huckabee’s record in Arkansas instead of buying his campaign positions hook, line and sinker. Huckabee is a Jimmy Carter. Do your research. I don’t care how funny he is. We’re not electing a comedian.

Don’t give up on Huckabee, he has a strong position on illegal aliens. Go to his website and look for it under the “issues” tab. Huck states he is opposed to amnesty. Will secure the border, no driver license for illegals, no sanctuary cities. Also wants to deal with the employers who hire illegals, said flat out on Glenn Beck he will build the fense. Thompson bombs out on Israel!. The “peace process” section of Thompson’s “white paper” on Israel on his website reads like GW’s Roadmap! Huck says let Saudi Arabia donate land for a Palestinian state. Go Huckabee!